RUI: Phylogeny and Diversification of Hydrangeaceae

协调系统发育分析与探索进化过程的研究对于理解生物多样性是必不可少的。这项以绣球花科植物为中心的研究旨在解决开花植物主要类群之间的系统发育关系。这将通过将重点放在主要分类群以及在蔷花科亚纲中鲜为人知和被认为是“异常”的类群上来完成，其中许多是亚洲起源的，在收集中鲜为人知。绣球科植物定位于菊科亚纲的分歧点附近，该研究将有助于我们进一步了解菊科亚纲起源前的进化多样性。建议的调查有三个方面：1。对绣球花和山茱萸属植物的解剖形态学特征进行系统发育分析，其分类定位在蔷薇科和菊科起源附近；2. 对绣球科植物进行系统发育分析，以区分自然类群的种属，探索绣球科植物的花、果进化规律；和3。个体发生或发育研究，以确定不同的细胞过程在不同的花和果实形式的进化中的作用。一个明确的系统发育框架将有助于指导关键分类群的选择，以便对产生花和果多样性的不同发育过程进行比较研究。

Investigations that coordinate phylogenetic analyses with explorations of the evolutionary processes are essential for understanding organismal diversity. The proposed research, centered on the hydrangea family of plants, aims to resolve phylogenetic relationships among major groups of flowering plants. This will be accomplished by focusing on key taxa in conjunction with groups that are poorly known and considered "anomalous" in the subclass Rosidae, many of which are Asian in origin and poorly known in collections. Hydrangeaceae are positioned near the divergence of the subclass Asteridae, and this investigation will increase our understanding of evolutionary diversification preceding the origin of subclass Asteridae with its great floral conservation. The proposed investigation has three facets: 1. phylogenetic analysis using anatomical and morphological features of plants of the hydrangea and dogwood groups positioned taxonomically among Rosidae and near the origin of Asteridae; 2. phylogenetic analysis within the Hydrangeaceae family to distinguish natural groups of species and genera and to explore patterns of flower and fruit evolution in the family; and 3. ontogenetic or developmental studies to determine roles of various cellular processes in the evolution of different floral and fruit forms. An explicit phylogenetic framework will help guide the choice of critical taxa in making comparisons for the study of different developmental processes that create flower and fruit diversity.